Debian 7.0 Wheezy released

After many months of constant development, the Debian project is proud
to present its new stable version 7.0 (code name “Wheezy”).
This new version of Debian includes various interesting features such as
multiarch support [1], several specific tools to deploy private
clouds [2], an improved installer, and a complete set of multimedia
codecs and front-ends which remove the need for third-party
repositories.

Multiarch support, one of the main release goals for “Wheezy”, will
allow Debian users to install packages from multiple architectures on
the same machine. This means that you can now, for the first time,
install both 32- and 64-bit software on the same machine and have all
the relevant dependencies correctly resolved, automatically.

The installation process has been greatly improved: Debian can now be
installed using software speech, above all by visually impaired people
who do not use a Braille device. Thanks to the combined efforts of a
huge number of translators, the installation system is available in 73
languages, and more than a dozen of them are available for speech
synthesis too.
In addition, for the first time, Debian supports installation and
booting using UEFI for new 64-bit PCs (amd64), although there is no
support for “Secure Boot” yet.
This release includes numerous updated software packages, such as:

With this broad selection of packages, Debian once again stays true to
its goal of being the universal operating system. It is suitable for
many different use cases: from desktop systems to netbooks; from
development servers to cluster systems; and for database, web, or
storage servers. At the same time, additional quality assurance efforts
like automatic installation and upgrade tests for all packages in
Debian’s archive ensure that “Wheezy” fulfills the high expectations
that users have of a stable Debian release. It is rock solid and
rigorously tested.

Want to give it a try?
If you want to simply try it without having to install it, you can use a
special image, known as a live image, available for CDs, USB sticks, and
netboot setups. Initially, these images are provided for the amd64 and
i386 architectures only. It is also possible to use these live images to
install Debian. More information is available from the Debian Live
homepage [3].

If, instead, you want to directly install it, you can choose among
various installation media, such as Blu-ray Discs, DVDs, CDs, and USB
sticks, or from the network. Several desktop environments — GNOME, KDE
Plasma Desktop and Applications, Xfce, and LXDE — may be installed
through CD images; the desired one may be chosen from the boot menus of
the CDs/DVDs. In addition, multi-architecture CDs and DVDs are available
which support installation of multiple architectures from a single disc.
Or you can always create bootable USB installation media (see the
Installation Guide [4] for more details).

The installation images may be downloaded right now via bittorrent [5]
(the recommended method), jigdo [6], or HTTP [7]; see Debian on CDs [8]
for further information. Wheezy will soon be available on physical DVD,
CD-ROM, and Blu-ray Discs from numerous vendors [9], too.

Already a happy Debian user and you only want to upgrade?
Upgrades to Debian 7.0 from the previous release, Debian 6.0 (codenamed
“Squeeze”), are automatically handled by the apt-get package management
tool for most configurations. As always, Debian systems may be upgraded
painlessly, in place, without any forced downtime, but it is strongly
recommended to read the release notes [10] as well as the installation
guide [11] for possible issues, and for detailed instructions on
installing and upgrading. The release notes will be further improved and
translated to additional languages in the weeks after the release.

Debian is a free operating system, developed by thousands of volunteers
from all over the world who collaborate via the Internet. The Debian
project’s key strengths are its volunteer base, its dedication to the
Debian Social Contract and Free Software, and its commitment to provide
the best operating system possible. Debian 7.0 is another important step
in that direction.